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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

About a year ago I had a dream about my sister TalTal (it is her nickname in Hebrew "taltal" means - a curl) when she was a young girl. In that dream she had long beautiful curls. When I awoke, I realized that what I was going to create that day would be "Curl Earrings". Under this inspiration I drove to my jewelry design workshop, and went right ahead and handcrafted them by sawing two flat pieces of silver to curl shapes, hammering them and adding ear wires. I loved the result. Then I started to think of more designs based on these earrings and followed, but a short while after, moved on to other jewelry designs.

This week I looked at the first design, and decided I could add round spirals to them, so I did exactly that. I have realized I could build up a whole collection with this idea.
There will be necklacea, pendants, other variations...you'll see (if you will be interested enough - of course!)

Sunday, November 27, 2011

My new ring is a simple thick 14k Gold band, hammered all around with a punch. You will find it in my Etsy shop.

Goldplated band ring

Saturday was a beautiful day. The sun was up and warm , the air was fresh and the flowers and trees looked their best after last week's rain. A perfect day for birthdays.I drove to the in laws of my daughter Adi's house, as we were celebrating my grandson Koren's birthday there. Koren is my adorable two year old grandson.I brought along with me two pies which I baked. One was a mushroom pie, with many kinds of mushrooms and cheeses in it, and the other - a spinach and noodle pie. I copied the recipes from my favorite cook book and they came out real yummy! There were great salads there to accompany them and a wonderful chocolate birthday cake, baked by my son in law's mother.

Then we played with Koren and sang birthday songs to him. Before I left, I watched as Koren's grandpa placed him on his knee and read a story book to him. I could not resist taking pictures.

Happy birthday little one! May God keep you safe from all the evils in this world, and may there be peace on earth! High time!!

Koren listening attentively to the story abut Goldy locks and the three bears.

Friday, November 25, 2011

Another of my handmade jewelry workshop friends is this absolutely gorgeous cat called Nimer.

He kind of "adopted" me. He knows I have a box full of cat food in my workshop for him and sisters, but he also likes to cuddle up to me, look admiringly at my face, and help me type while I am at the computer.
I said to him: "today I am posting about the BESTeam, so do not disturb. If you wanna help, just go outside" which he did....

Here are this week's BESTeam featured shops:PoisonGarden
Poison Garden is a the name chosen by three artists who love whatever is romantic but with a bit of an edge to it. In their Etsy shop they sell handmade vintage and refreshed vintage items in various styles such as Victorian, Neo-Victorian, Steampunk, Gothic and whimsical. Many of the ribbon jewelry and accessories they sell are lovingly stitched by hand.
One of my favorites is this :

In this shop you will find wreaths and wall hangings with dried flowers and unique substances such as
seashells to create unusual home decor. There are also photo frames, mirrors and china with seashells and seaglass.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

This dog's name is Mika. She belongs to a sculptor who is a neigbour of mine by my handcrafted artisan jewelry workshop. She comes every day to the door of my workshop to greet me. Michael is a very young man who studies in a school nearby, and every once in a while, arrives after school hours, takes Mika by the leash and they have a nice long walk together. They seem to like each other quite a bit.

I have always been a dog and cat lover. Mika is a special favorite. I love to watch these large beautiful brown eyes of hers. It seems like she is talking to me with her eyes. She is adorable!

I have listened lately to a disk with Jazz musician Diana Krall, singing "When I Look in your Eyes". She sings it as a love song.. I immediately recalled where I had heard it before. It was a very long time ago, sung by stage and movie actor Rex Harrison in the film "Doctor Dolittle". He was singing it to a seal. His rendition was touching , humorous ,tender. I have lately looked it up on You Tube.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

In my Yesterday's post I wrote that I was lucky, never got wet in the rain! Well - today was another story altogether!I had an appointment at my dentist's, so I grabbed my umbrella( just in case) and what do you think? I only stepped out of my door, and it started pouring! Torrents!I rushed to my car and slammed myself inside! Luckily I got to my dentist on time. As soon as I rushed out of my car right into the dentist's door - it stopped!

I looked up at the skies. Decided to smile back at them...

The truth is I am very thankful for the rain. All countries in the Middle East have to replenish their water supplies, and this week's rain is a blessing.

Between rain intervals, I managed to get to my handmade jewelry workshop which is located outside of town, and handcraft a 14k Gold carved ring:

I am a new member of the Etsybloggers team. I have chosen three items from shops of my new friends there:This is MaureenCracknell's shop. Maureen handcrafts Home decor, fun accessories and one of a kind toys, made of natural materials such as wool, felt and more. I found some some amazing felted pillow cases such as this one:

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

I think I have some luck with the weather. It was raining cats and dogs in the morning, with strong winds howling outside. I stayed home with my cat, nice and cozy for a few hours. Then I felt that nothing doing! Storm or no storm, I must go out to do what I have to do - go to the post office to send a few parcels, to the supermarket, the bank, etc., I picked my umbrella, and what do you know? - the rain had stopped as soon as I walked out the door, and the sun was peaking here and there between the clouds. I stayed out for about two hours and returned home. As soon as I unlocked the door - a heavy shower! So what do you have to say to that? I guess somebody up there likes me... (only every once in a while I think)

. As for my handmade jewelry workshop, I've been a little more productive this week. I handcrafted two pairs of ear studs and goldplated them:

I would like to present to you three of my BESTeam (Boosting Etsy Shops Team)members and their unique shops:

Danielle Saletzkihttp://www.etsy.com/people/ChickyDs
Danielle is a professional graphic designer and works at a local newspaper near her home. As much as she loves her job, she enjoys creating with her hands. She loves to handcrafte fashionable hair bows.

In CK Silver you will find classic, well made handcrafted elegant silver jewelry,to be worn with pride. Cindy puts her heart into every item she creates. You can see this in her shop's images:

The shop's specialities are sterling silver, pearls, semi-precious stones, and Swarovski crystals.
Cindy is primarily inspired by the beauty of Nature, and the amazing richness of creation. She mainly loves earth tones and other colors found in the landscapes surrounding her.

AbsolutelyKismethttp://www.etsy.com/shop/AbsolutelyKismet
When I first viewed the wine charm in this shop, made of empty brass shell castings. I felt a shiver go through my spine! It immediately reminded me of the following verse from the Bible:
Isaiah chapter D
"... And He shall judge between the nations, and shall decide for many peoples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. ..."

Perhaps you will think that I am being TOO dramatic. Please let me say this of AbsolutelyKismet - if every weapon in this world was turned into a beautiful item, such as the small example in this shop, the world would be a much nicer place to live in!

Saturday, November 12, 2011

I love freeform gemstones. I collect them one by one. Simply cannot resist the temptation. When they are cut into a small freeform shape, I feel as if part of the world is in my little hands. The richness and variety of stones never ceases to amaze me. Lately it has been Australian boulder Opal stones. Last week I was to prepare a necklace for a customer of mine. Instead I felt that I MUST create this ring first. Of course I finished the necklace and delivered it on time, but the real fun was in making this ring. It may be one of the simplest designs I've made, but sometimes "simple" in collaboration with a beautiful stone does the job.

Here is some information about Opal stones: There were times when the stone was considered an unlucky stone, probably becuase of it's fragility. Cutting this stone is rather tricky because it has a tendency of chipping.Anyway , the stones I use, are cut with a thick layer of the basic matrix, to give it a stong backing.The stone contains a high percentage of water, and can deteriorate if entered into hot or cold fluids.Inspite of this, some places in the world use it as a charm for luck.

One can find Opals in a numerous and awesome variety, here are 3 examples:Harlequin Opal. This stone has a rich coloration with specs of blue, red and yellow. Common opal has a dull white color with a tendency to blue but is not as flashy as the Harlequin.Fire opal has intense red and yellow hues.I love to combine them in my jewelry.If you love Opals too,you should know one important thing about them: They should be washed in pure water from time to time to remove traces of makeup from the stones. Never wear them while tending to house work.You may also like the following etsy shops from the Etsy Treasury Promotion Team:http://www.etsy.com/shop/Jashme

Friday, November 11, 2011

As you may know, I handcraft silver and gold artisan jewelry. I was about to show off with a new Opal ring I've handcrafted a few days ago, but I will do this tomorrow maybe.I could not resist posting about my love for olive trees.Along each side of the road, when approaching my handmade jewelry design workshop, there is a row of beautiful olive trees standing there, watching me go by, every day of the year.

As I get closer to my workshop I take an appraising look at these trees. This time of the year they are laden with beautiful olives. They seem to call out to me: " Please pick my olives"! So that's exactly what I do. I collect quite a number of beautiful black olives into a small bylon bag and then drive off happily on to my workshop.I do this every year and fill about 5 jars with olives. We eat them all years round.

Here's how I pickle them:First I put them all in a bowl of water and cut through each one of them with a knife.Then I fill about 5 glass jars ( I use empty coffee jars for this) with the olives and pour fresh water over them.I change the water every day for abut 4-5 days. This gets out the bitternes out of them.On the fifth day I add a few slices of lemon, to each jar, a slice or two of a green sharp pepper, about 10 garlic cloves, a soup spoonful of rough salt. I fill up the jar with water,and add some olive oil on top!Then I place the jars in a cupboard, away from daylight.Within about 10 days, the olives are ready.I do this once a year and we have delicious olives at out table throughout the year (if we do not finish them earlier!)

Thursday, November 3, 2011

I am a Scorpion. Anyway - that's my sign, as I was born on November 2nd many years ago.

I do not know whether all Scorpios have an obsession with ear hoops. But it definitely is the case with me when it comes to hoop earrings. I was not so aware of it until I entered my Etsy shop of handmade jewelry designs and counted them. I have spontaneously designed so many of them. It is true - I love earrings in all shapes and sizes, but what happens is I always go back to - hoops. I love to think of an Ethnic design and present it in my own version:

is a shop run by Kristine Cherry. Kristine has taken a close look at dragonflies and feels that something inside her identifies with them - their neverending search for something. Kristine's studio has in it a whole lot of books beads and fabrics. If you find, in her shop, something which you cannot resist, and feel you must buy it - it is the sign for her that you have found the perfect design! But truthfully, Kristine simply enjoys to create things which would make people say : "Ooooo, that's pretty!"

Another favorite shop on Etsy is Creativitybugs. It is run by Sandy and Sue, who are two sisters with a passion for crafting. They began by creating gifts for family and friends but now it is turning into a business venture.

Sandy and Sue create paper crafts and gifts, handmade cards, paper craft kits and supplies, holiday gifts, doll clothing and accessories, and a whole lot more.The materials they use are of the highest quality!

When I read the names of Etsy shops, many times they

capture my imagination. Such is the shop name Ourhometoyours. What immediately comes to my mind is a warm cozy place which is someone's home, and it offers some of its warmth to us - visitors to their shop. What a nice inviting name this is!

It is run by Debbi and Amanda who are mother and daughter. Debbi is a mom is to 3 children who still live at home, and has a grandson who is almost 3 years old, about a year older than my own grandson. This sounds like a lot of fun! Debbi is one of these people who enjoys her job! On one hand - she lovingly creates things which other people enjoy, and still has time to spend with her family.

Daughter Amanda is a photo specialist at Wal-mart but I has a Masters Degree in Graphic Design and would like to pursue that as her career. Her background is Fine Art and she is offering her drawings for sale along with her crafts. Amanda designs all the banners and avatars for their shop, and hopes to have agraphic design business of her own some day.

And we have a lovely jewelry designer's shp here too- jaynemarie's shop

Janynemarie Crawford started making jewelry when her daughters were small. I had made them clothes and, accessories. She discovered about herself that she enjoys designing and handcrafting jewelry.She began by creating it for herself and when people started to compliment her for her designs, she decided to begin selling it. Jaynemarie enjoys the lustre and shapes of gemstones and fine pearls and various silver and gold chains.

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About Me

I have always loved handmade items, where people have invested their imagination and creativity and I can feel their human touch.
When I retired from my job as a secretary I decided I would join this handmade community.
I chose to be a metalsmith. Therefore, I went to an Art school and studied Jewelry Design.I have been a silver and gold smith ever since.
I immensely enjoy following an idea I have and transforming it into a piece of handmade jewelry.
I hope I will be able to continue doing so until my very last day!